


Close encounter

by Chim



Category: Captain America - All Media Types, Marvel
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canary, BAMF Steve Rogers, M/M, Non-Serum Steve Rogers/Winter Soldier Bucky Barnes | Shrinkyclinks, Pre-Serum Steve Rogers, Shrinkyclinks Fest 2020, Winter Soldier Bucky Barnes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-01
Updated: 2020-05-01
Packaged: 2021-03-02 02:07:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,429
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23937364
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chim/pseuds/Chim
Summary: Steve is sent into an officially abandoned base by some shady SHIELD agents who refuse to collaborate or tell him anything relevant, looking for... they didn't even tell him what he was looking for.Whatever they hoped to find in that base, it doesn't go exactly as they planned.Or: Steve is a Canary, the Winter Soldier is sneaky and this may not be the first time they meet - even if only one of them remembers it.
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes & Steve Rogers, James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers
Comments: 16
Kudos: 146
Collections: Shrinkyclinks Fest 2020





	Close encounter

**Author's Note:**

> This isn't what I initially planned for this fest, but life happened. I hope someone will still find this little fic interesting and enjoyable.  
> Based on the prompt: "Steve is a Canary - an army volunteer who's sent into potentially dangerous areas to find out how bad it is. (If he lives, they'll send in real troops. Canaries are disposable.) He's sent into a compound rumored to house the Winter Soldier - they figure either it's empty and Steve returns, or he'll get shot and they'll know where to attack. The Winter Soldier has no interest in killing such an obvious non-threat, but he's not going to let him leave, either." by Elf.

The doors slid open, soundless, revealing a long hallway shrouded in darkness. The air was stale, the floor covered by a thin layer of dust.

Steve stepped inside, keeping close to the wall. He waited a moment to make sure that the door would stay open and, when it did, he carefully made his way through the hallway. It split in two, heading right and left. No one told him which direction to take, so he went left.

The underground base seemed abandoned, just like the upper floors, and yet the suspicious feeling in Steve’s gut urged him to be careful as he moved forward, to keep all his senses alert and check behind every corner.

He didn’t like that particular mission. Didn’t like the secrecy and didn’t like that his usual team hadn’t been involved. But the orders had come from someone very high up on the food chain, and Steve had no grounds to protest.

The fact that he’d been in that base for at least five minutes and his supervisor had _still_ not talked to him was mildly irritating, though. They had refused to tell him anything beforehand, saying that they would tell him what to do and where to go once he was inside, and he needed to know nothing more than that.

There were three doors on his right, two on his left, and the hallway continued until it split again twenty or so meters ahead.

Steve tapped his earpiece and, normally, with his team, that would’ve been enough to receive an immediate answer. All he got was silence. He waved a hand in front of his glasses, clearly asking for feedback. Again, nothing. He held in a sigh: amateurs, all of them. Had they never worked with a Canary before?

It wasn’t that hard: Canaries risked their lives going in before the agents, exploring the place, mapping it if it was necessary, assessing the threat and the difficulty of a mission. But they needed _someone_ to monitor them, at least to let them know how to proceed. And he _knew_ they were receiving his video feed, the little green sign in the top right corner of his glasses confirmed that the cameras were on.

He tapped his earpiece again, annoyed. That was precisely the reason he liked his usual team: they knew what he needed and, more than that, they knew how to do _their_ job. Tony would’ve _never_ left him hanging like that for so long.

The lights in the hallway turned on and Steve almost jumped back, startled, but managed to keep himself in check and flattened his body against the wall. But no one came. No steps, no voices. The lights had turned on seemingly by themselves. Motion detectors? The upper floors had been abandoned by at least a decade or two, did motion detectors exist back in 2010? The 2000s? What about the 90s?

Something in that place wasn’t quite right.

He tapped his earpiece. “Do you copy?” he whispered, hating that he actually had to use his voice: it was a danger that could be _easily_ avoided if only they were _paying attention to him_. And they _still_ weren’t answering. But the connection was on; what kind of stupid game were they playing, leaving him completely in the dark? Just as he thought that, the green circle at the corner of his glasses flickered and disappeared. Something had cut the connection. Great.

There were no cameras in the hallway that he could see, and a quick scan didn’t reveal hidden ones. With a muted curse Steve took his glasses off and snapped them in two pieces before letting them fall to the floor and crunching them underfoot. SHIELD would probably be pissed at him for destroying equipment, but it was their fault in the first place that their tech was so easily hackable. Steve refused to get killed because those idiots were too stupid and greedy to give him decent tech.

At least his bracelet still worked. _That_ was a direct line to his team, a gift from Tony. Even if they weren’t working together that day, at least they would know it if something happened to him. It’s not like he had any family left outside of them. If his vitals suddenly dropped to zero the team would be notified, and they would probably investigate his disappearance.

He pushed those thoughts out of his head and sighed, swiftly turning around and heading for the door: there was clearly someone in that base, and he had no intention of risking his life for some shady agents that refused to collaborate and expected him to do all the work.

The main door was closed. Not only that: it didn’t want to open, not even with the code. Swearing under his breath Steve reached in his pocket, grabbing the little disk Tony had designed to open doors way more advanced than that one. He pressed it against the lock, pushed the center of the disk and took a few steps back as it lit up.

Steve felt the hair on the back of his neck rise. Someone was watching him. Someone close. He made to turn, but couldn’t do it in time: pain exploded in the back of his head, making the world spin and turn upside down. The last thing he saw was the glint of the neon light bouncing off of something metal. Then he hit the hard ground.

\---

When he woke up tied to a chair he wasn’t even surprised. That had happened a few times before, so it was hardly a new experience. He hadn’t expected the Winter Soldier, though.

Steve’s eyes widened and his breath hitched, muscles tensing against the ropes. A moment later he forced himself to calm down. He’d been taken to a bare room, the walls a depressing grey color and a drain in the middle of the floor. Clearly an interrogation room.

The Soldier regarded him coldly. “You know who I am.”

“Well,” Steve retorted, way too snarky for a man in his position. “It’s not like you’re making an effort of hiding it.” The infamous assassin was wearing his black uniform, metal arm in full view, face hidden by a mask. His blue eyes seemed to sparkle under the neon lights, eliciting all kind of memories in Steve’s mind.

For a split second he was sure he could feel the warmth of a blazing fire against his skin, his mother’s labored breathing, a worried voice urging him to never tell anyone what he’d saw that night.

“Who sent you?” The Soldier was playing with a knife, almost idly, as if his casual tone and posture didn’t convey enough threatening energy.

Steve almost laughed. “You don’t remember me, do you?”

That seemed to shock the other man, at least. He straightened, dropping his casual act, and looked at Steve with suspicion.

“SHIELD is looking for you,” Steve said, anticipating his questions. “Well, not _officially_ , but the shady agents waiting outside are.” They weren’t incredibly bright, that was true, but they were still SHIELD agents. If they hadn’t broken in yet it meant that the Soldier had probably done something to fool them. “They wouldn’t tell me why they were interested in this base, but I think it’s clear by now they’ve tracked you here.”

“Why are you telling me this?”

Steve grinned up at him. “You saved my mom’s life, a long time ago. Made me promise to never tell anyone about you.” The Soldier was actually the main reason Steve had ended up as a Canary. “Figured it was time to return the favor and help you out.”

The Soldier still looked dubious, brows furrowed in a baffled frown. “What’s your name?” he eventually asked, sounding a little bit lost.

“Steve Rogers.” With a last tug Steve managed to get rid of the ropes binding his wrists. He gently massaged the irritated skin, satisfied when the Soldier didn’t even point a gun to his head.

“You’re that blond kid.” The other man frowned even more. “You tried to punch me.”

Steve grinned again, a little sharper. “Well, yes. That seemed the sensible course of action to little ten-year-old me.” 

Something amazing happened then: the Winter Soldier chuckled. He chuckled, and he shook his head in an exasperated manner that looked almost fond. “Looks like you’re gonna survive another close encounter with the Winter Soldier, kid.” The hint of an accent slipped in his voice. Brooklyn.

“Yeah, well.” Steve shrugged, completely unworried. “I have a feeling it won’t be the last.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! If you have a moment, please consider leaving a comment.  
> I'm also on [Tumblr](https://chim-aceyliz.tumblr.com/) and [Twitter](https://twitter.com/Chim_aceyliz), come say hi!


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